December 2024 - vcf-midatlantic

Festivus grape leaves
by bernieS 18 Dec '24

18 Dec '24

> Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2024 09:51:28 -0500 > From: Joseph Giliberti <kd2dhp(a)gmail.com> > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Festivus grape leaves > > I think this is an on topic message. > > Who brought the stuffed grape leaves to Festivus? I think I was the only > one who was eating them because I'm guessing I'm the only one who knew > what they were. They were excellent. If it were socially acceptable, > I may have eaten them all. I'd love the recipe > > Regards, > > Joe Giliberti. Joe, thanks for the complement about the stuffed grape leaves I brought to Festivus! It would've been fine with me had you eaten them all, because many were leftover after Festivus and I ended up taking more than a dozen home with me. I can't take credit for making them, though. The note I placed by the tray said "Vegetarian. Made in Turkey, but no turkeys were harmed." These are SULTAN brand Stuffed Grape Leaves, and they're available from Amazon! But I bought mine from a local grocer that specializes in middle-eastern foods. https://www.amazon.com/Sultan-Stuffed-Grape-Leaves-14/dp/B076DK3FLY The cylindrical cans they came in says, "Stuffed grape leaves, also known as Dolma or Dolmads, have a rich history that dates back to the Ottoman Empire. Popular throughout the Mediterranean, these little vegetarian parcels have been stuffed with rice & herbs, and are hand rolled in a time honored tradition. Often found in a Mezze platter, it can be served hot or cold, and as either an appetizer or main dish. For Meal Solutions and Recipes go to: https://www.ziyad.com Distributed by ZIYAD BROS. IMPORTING Ciciera, IL 60804" I hope this answers your questions and that you can get more of these Dolmades from Amazon or locally. Sadly, I can't give you the recipe because it's a closely-guarded secret of the Ziyad family, who are originally from Syria. I'm guessing the Ziyad family stopped advertising that fact in 1979 when the U.S. State Dept designated Syria (under President Hafez al-Assad) a State Sponsor of Terrorism for allegedly providing continued political and military support to various terrorist groups. His son Bashar took over in 2000, and *his* government was overthrown ten days ago, so he fled to Russia where he was granted political asylum. Perhaps some terrorists enjoyed eating delicious dolmades in the field. It seems unlikely that Syrian political prisoners were fed delicious dolmades. On Saturday, Herman, a curator at the InfoAge Electronic Warfare Museum, told me it's probably that Bashar stashed Billions of stolen Dollars in Swiss bank accounts before fleeing Syria. That'll buy a lot of dolmades so he can feel right at home in Russia. -bernieS

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MARCH Steering Committee Election results
by Thomas G 17 Dec '24

17 Dec '24

Hello all, Sorry for getting this out so late, but I've been in a bit of a tizzy from Festivus. The results from the most recent steering committee are as follows: Doug Crawford: 30 Jeff Salzman: 29 CJ Reha: 28 Dean Notarnicola: 25 Rick Lewis: 11 Doug Crawford and Jeff Salzman have both won re-election for their seats, and CJ Reha shall be assuming Dave McGuire's seat coming into 2025. In addition, as Ian Litchfield is resigning at the end of this year, his seat shall be filled by the first runner-up (as we have done in the past, for instance, when Dave McGuire assumed Alex Jacocks's seat following his resignation one year ago) - as such, Dean Notarnicola shall assume Ian Litchfield's seat for the remainder of his term, which ends at EOY 2025. As its first act, the steering committee has also elected yours truly - Thomas G. - as official chairman of the MARCH Steering Committee. I look forward to serving in this role to the best of my abilities! Congratulations to both the winners and all involved, and thank you very much to all who voted! These results will also be available in the upcoming newsletter for the month of January, 2025. -Thomas G. Chairman of MARCH & Collections Manager

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] 'twas the night before Festivus ...
by Dean Notarnicola 15 Dec '24

15 Dec '24

Saved On Sun, Dec 15, 2024 at 11:27 AM Sentry TV via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Excellent!Hit Print before its deleted. > > On Sunday, December 15, 2024 at 11:22:45 AM EST, Dean Notarnicola via > vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > ’Twas the Night Before Christmas at the Museum > > > ’Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the place, not a > creature was stirring, only just a Brace! > > > The punch cards were stacked by the Altair with care, > > In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there. > > The terminals hummed with a soft, gentle glow, > > While visions of BASIC danced to and fro. > > With volunteers nestled snug at their screens, > > Dreaming of tech from the ’70s scene. > > > When out from the bench there arose such a clatter, > > I sprang from my desk to see what was the matter. > > Away to the Univac, I flew like a flash, > > Hoping the data tapes hadn’t been trashed. > > > The glow of monitors cast an odd light, > > Giving life to machines asleep for the night. > > When what to my wondering eyes should appear, > > But a miniature drive sled and eight robotic reindeer. > > > With a jolly old driver so lively and quick, > > I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. > > Faster than a Cray his coursers they came, > > And he whistled and shouted and called them by name: > > “Now Tandy! Now Apple! Now Commodore, too! > > On Atari! On Osborne! On Macintosh, you! > > To the top of the rack, to the end of the hall, > > Now compute away, compute away all!” > > > As floppy disks spin when systems engage, > > The relics came to life on this magical stage. > > Up to the mezzanine the reindeer they flew, > > With a sleigh full of parts and St. Nicholas, too. > > > And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the floor, > > The clacking of keyboards and drives as they roared. > > As I drew in my head and turned back around, > > Down the mini-computer St. Nicholas came with a bound. > > > He was dressed in red silicon, circuits aglow, > > With wires and LEDs making him show. > > A bundle of cables was flung on his back, > > And he looked like a coder unloading his stack. > > > His eyes—how they twinkled! His dimples, how merry! > > His cheeks like capacitors, his nose a red cherry! > > His droll little mouth was drawn up in geek delight, > > As he gazed at the machines in the soft winter night. > > > He spoke not a word, but went straight to his task, > > Refurbishing systems—no need to ask. > > He restored the old servers, fixed bugs in the code, > > And breathed life anew into systems that slowed. > > > Then laying his finger aside of his key, > > He hit “Run” on the program, delighting in glee. > > Through the leaky roof, he rose to his sleigh, > > Ready to spread more joy the tech-lover’s way. > > > He sprang to his ride, gave a shout to his team, > > And away they all flew like a well-coded dream. > > But I heard him exclaim, as he soared out of sight, > > “Happy computing to all, and to all a good night!” > :-) > > > On Sat, Dec 14, 2024 at 12:49 AM Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > and all through the place, not a creature was stirring, only just a > Brace! > > > > Finish the poem! > > > >

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Festivus grape leaves
by Joseph Giliberti 15 Dec '24

15 Dec '24

I think this is an on topic message. Who brought the stuffed grape leaves to Festivus? I think I was the only one who was eating them because I'm guessing I'm the only one who knew what they were. They were excellent. If it were socially acceptable, I may have eaten them all. I'd love the recipe Regards, Joe Giliberti.

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Breakfast tomorrow (Sunday Dec.15)
by Jeffrey Brace 14 Dec '24

14 Dec '24

For those still around after Festivus we are going to the diner: Americana Diner in Shrewsbury at 9:30AM. GPS: https://maps.google.com?q=Americana%20Diner,%201160%20NJ-35,%20Shrewsbury,%… Address: 1160 NJ-35, Shrewsbury, NJ 07702 See you there! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner VCF Mid-Atlantic Event Manager Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Festivus 2024 Video Game Signup
by Jeffrey Brace 14 Dec '24

14 Dec '24

Signup here which games that you are bringing: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Xe1Wz62cI1q04TUVy--NAUHKzz7T0aedXTl… I need to know how many tables need to be set up.

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Safely moving machines...
by Herbert Johnson 14 Dec '24

14 Dec '24

Discussion about foamed boxes to move S-100 chassis, caught my eye. ONe consideration for hobbyists is to acquire th epacking from local resources - say the big box hardware stores, found boxes. Hardware stores have best prices on heavyduty moving boxes of size, and packing materials. Taking time to make your own moving boxes gives you good storage boxes too. Make sure the boxes you use have heavy cardboard - not thin boxes to ship paper towels! Myself, I have used sheet styrofoam insulation, cut-to-fit whatever box, assembled around the S-100 chassis. The pink insulation is firmer and good for outside layers. The white insulating is yielding and good for the inside nearest the chassis. Not a bad idea, to have a layer of big-bubblewrap as a cushion on the bottom of the chassis, for a little bounce. Or some semisoft foamy carpetpadding (not the chunky composite stuff). Fabric stores sometimes have foam padding on sale. Or find some yoga floormat that's too soft at a thrift store. By big bubble bubblewrap, I mean like one-two square inches. Not air bags, if one of them breaks you got nuttin. Bag the chassis, to keep the dust and styro bits out; what used to be called "recycling trash bags" are transparent (you can't put recycles in plastic bags anymore), but get bags with some thickness if you can. YOu can cut-out areas in foam, where you have extensions from the chassis, like front-panel toggles. Fill in empty space not full of toggles, with large-bubble bubblewrap. Small bubble bubblewrap is OK for light flat objects, not heavy items. Where to get boxes other than hardware stores? Dunkin Donuts, small retailers, some groceries and dollar stores (some have policies against). Shop your local dumpsters. Knowing the sizes you need, gives you opportunities in-the-field to find such things when you see them. With luck you'll find styrofoam too, bubble wrap. PS: For Apple II owners: I found 25-pound mozzarella boxes really good for Apple IIs! Fit is good and the sides overlap, very sturdy. Don't tell Grandpa it's icky to pull stuff from dumpsters. Save the planet from throwing out things still useful and filling up your local landfill - your trash taxes pay those landfill fees. Dumpster reclamation is how you ended up with your IMSAIs and Altairs, you know. ho ho ho Herb Johnson still not a bot -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey USA https://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT comcast DOT net

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Open time for Festivus
by Jeffrey Brace 14 Dec '24

14 Dec '24

is officially 10AM, but I will likely be there by 9AM. The door should just pull open. Call the VCF landline if you need to contact me: (732) 722-5015 See youze guys there! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner VCF Mid-Atlantic Event Manager Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Food 4 Festivus
by Jeffrey Brace 13 Dec '24

13 Dec '24

Shoprite burgers, hotdogs and related software has been ordered and will be picked up tonight. Jersey Mike’s subs are ordered and picked up tomorrow at noon. 3 catering boxes this time. Around 2 PM pizza and garlic bread will be ordered from Vic’s. Burgers start cooking at 5:30PM Steering Committee meeting at 6 while we eat. Take care! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner VCF Mid-Atlantic Event Manager Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Safely moving machines...
by William Sudbrink 13 Dec '24

13 Dec '24

Ok, I guess I'm publicly committing here... I'm planning on bringing several full size S-100 chassis and 8 inch floppies to VCF East 2025 (it's the Altair's 50th birthday). I've always, in the past, crammed my car full of stuff for VCF but this ain't gonna fit. So, I'm going to rent a van or a truck. The question is how to put this equipment into a van/truck without damaging it. I'm thinking about having foam-in-place boxes made for each chassis. This seems fairly safe to me, plus having heavy duty boxes with handhold cutouts will make them a lot easier to move. I have no idea how much this would cost so I'm asking here. Is there some way to do it cheap? Is there a service that does it well? Is there a better idea? Thanks, Bill S. -- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. www.avast.com

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